AN UP and coming band’s quest for stardom takes a step forward next month, with their inclusion on the prestigious BBC Radio 1 daytime playlist.

Little Girl, the latest single by Gwynedd-based band Masters in France, will share the airwaves with some of music’s biggest names from April 4, and will be heard by millions of listeners on shows hosted by the likes of Fern Cotton and Scott Mills.

The five piece, who hail from Caernarfon, Bethel, Blaenau Ffestiniog and Llangefni, have seen their popularity soar in recent months, and they will also play live tomorrow (Friday), alongside some of Wales’ top new music talents on BBC Radio Wales’ second annual Music Day.

The band’s guitarist Mathew Sayer, is excited by the opportunities which lie ahead of them, with a European tour also set to kick off within the next few weeks. He said: “It’s amazing. It all happened really quickly. I heard that we were going to be included on the Radio 1 playlist while I was at work, and I couldn’t believe it.

“It’s obviously a prestigious honour to be picked, and we have the chance of appearing on up to seven different shows every day on Radio 1 during the course of a week, which should really boost our profile.

“I think that all of the hard work is now starting to pay off. We’ve had some ups and downs as with any band, sometimes you drive for hours and play in front of 20 people, but hopefully we can now push on, and we’re really looking forward to our tour, which now has dates in Ireland and France, in addition to the UK.”

The band, which was formed in 2009, first came to prominence with the release of their single Greyhounds, with Radio 1 DJ’s Bethan Elfyn and Huw Stevens playing the debut and its follow up Mad Hatter on their shows regularly.

Since then, they have played at Wakestock, and starred at the BBC Radio 1 Fringe Festival in Bangor last year, while garnering a growing number of fans throughout North Wales and further afield.

Mathew added: “The next few months are going to be really busy for us, we have lots of tour dates coming up, and this kind of exposure with BBC Radio Wales and Radio 1 has come at the ideal time. We are also hoping to organise a local gig to thank our fans for their support really soon. It’s an exciting time.”

Masters in France’s new single Little Girl is available to download from Apple’s iTunes store. To find out more about the band and their upcoming tour dates, visit www.myspace.com/mastersinfrance.